Edward Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Escrick

Who was Edward Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Escrick?

Edward Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Escrick was a British nobleman and Parliamentarian.

Howard was the youngest son of Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk. He was knighted KB. In 1624 he was elected Member of Parliament for Calne and for Wallingford and chose to sit for Calne. He was elected MP for Hertford in 1628 but created Baron Howard of Escrick on 12 April 1628.

Howard was one of the twelve peers who signed the petition on grievances, which he presented to Charles I at York in 1640. He was very active in the early parts of the English Civil War. He was one of the ten Lords selected to attend the Westminster Assembly of Divines along with 20 Commoners as lay assessor, and was often employed in negotiations with Scottish officials. However, he was left off the Committee of Both Kingdoms and generally seems to play less of a role in the coming years.

After the abolition of the House of Lords in 1649 he sat in the Commons as member for Carlisle, being also a member of the council of state. In 1651 he was expelled from parliament for taking bribes.